Author: staff
Using Russia’s immobilized state assets to help fund Ukraine returned to the EU agenda after the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Sweden last month called on the European Commission to explore “new options” for unlocking them. More than €200 billion in Russian central-bank assets are immobilized across the EU, with most held by Belgian-based financial depository Euroclear. The Belgian government has resisted proposals to use the funds, citing the potential legal and financial risks it could face in the event of Russian retaliation or litigation. Kyiv’s renewed appeal reflects the growing pressure to find additional money for Ukraine, with the country…
As fertility rates plunge across the EU, the impact of migration on demographics is becoming increasingly evident. Since 2012, more people have been dying in the EU than have been born, and last year, new births reached their lowest point on record, at 3.46 million. Although migration is indeed helping to keep demographic collapse at bay, figures circulating online are not always accurate. Take this video shared by Tommy Robinson, a British far-right activist, which was watched nearly 700,000 times, claiming that nearly all population growth last year was driven by foreigners. The video doesn’t cite sources, but data from…
The captain of an oil tanker that collided with a cargo ship and sank off Istanbul leaving 10 crew missing has been arrested along with his third-in-command on charges of negligent homicide, prosecutors said on Friday. The pair were arrested by a court late on Thursday, a day after the pre-dawn collision in which the ALSU, an empty oil tanker, struck the Tuğberk İmamoğlu, a cargo vessel carrying rolled steel, in the Sea of Marmara near Istanbul. The case is being handled by prosecutors in Silivri on the western outskirts of Istanbul province. According to the prosecutors’ statement, the Silvri…
By Jonathan Benton with AFP Published on 04/09/2026 – 12:23 GMT+2 US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the British government’s adherence to EU rules posed “a problem” for the country’s goal of expanding a trade deal struck with President Donald Trump’s administration last year. His comments come as British Prime Minister Andy Burnham looks to build on his predecessor Keir Starmer’s efforts to forge closer post-Brexit cooperation with the European Union. Asked whether the UK was using the “freedom” afforded by its departure from the EU at the start of the decade, Greer told the Financial Times: “No, they’re not.” “Based on my…
Artificial intelligence is advancing at a rapid pace, and its growing role in everyday life is on full display at this year’s IFA in Berlin, the world’s largest consumer electronics and home appliances trade fair. Under the theme “The Future is Now,” the event showcases how emerging technologies are reshaping daily life, from mobility to the increased use of AI in devices and services, with more than 1,900 brands from 49 countries represented at IFA 2026. Nowhere is this transformation more visible than in the home. The industry is increasingly looking beyond the “smart home” towards what it describes as…
“The glorification of war criminals has no place; it goes really, really strong against European values and has no space, not in the EU member states, but also in our candidates,” she said. “We are observing the situation very carefully … and we will see what will happen in [the] next days and we also see the actions of the government,” Kos added. “There is for sure a place for Serbia in the EU, but [the EU] demands not just doing the reforms. The strategic alliances or strategic orientation on the field of common security and foreign policy is getting…
By Frances Lopez & Video by Maud Zaba Published on 04/09/2026 – 12:03 GMT+2 For millions of families across Europe, the monthly budget is tight. Essential goods like food, housing, energy, and transport consume roughly 46% of every euro spent by EU households, forming the non-negotiable baseline required to cover daily survival, commuting, and utilities. With eurozone inflation sitting at a three-year high of 3.3% and energy costs jumping 14.3%, fresh Eurostat numbers show a strange counter-trend. Instead of shutting their wallets completely, people are quietly shaving pennies off their daily routines so they can still afford a normal and enjoyable life. While…
Published on 04/09/2026 – 8:08 GMT+2 Two sailors from a US aircraft carrier making a port call to Thailand were sent back to the ship after a drunken altercation, Thai police said on Friday. Police were alerted to a “small scuffle” involving the sailors in the early hours of Thursday near Pattaya’s nightlife hotspot Walking Street, city police chief Colonel Anek Srathongyoo told the AFP news agency. “The sailors were drunk and they were fighting, making loud noise,” he said. He described the incident as “trivial” and said local residents had only called police to prevent it from escalating. The…
Greek marine fisheries produced 42,100.8 tonnes of fishery products in 2025, worth €166.62 million, according to data from the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT). The fishing fleet consisted of 11,399 motorised vessels, the overwhelming majority of which (10,949) used other inshore fishing gear. Boats using large nets to surround schools of fish, called purse seiners, caught more than half of the total volume, 21,667.5 tonnes, but they accounted for only 28.9% of the total value. By contrast, vessels using other inshore fishing gear accounted for only 23% of the volume but generated the largest share of its value, at 38.3%, or…
Published on 04/09/2026 – 11:15 GMT+2 The White House wants Americans to know it can have fun too, and this week it decided a deportation-centred video game was the way to do it. The Trump administration launched Arcade, a section of its official website featuring five low-resolution games modelled on classic titles, each one repackaging a different plank of the president’s agenda as a bit of pixelated fun. The most contentious of the five is Rio Run, a reworking of the classic mobile game Snake. It features a digital version of Tom Homan, the administration’s border czar, chasing migrants depicted…